For the fourth straight season, Mahtomedi and Grand Rapids met in the state baseball tournament. Mahtomedi has enjoyed the matchup, winning three times.

The latest was a 5-3 heart-racing triumph in a Class 3A semifinal on Friday at Chaska Athletic Park.

“It’s still spiking,” Andrew Sokoll said of his heart rate a few minutes after the win. The junior pitched 3 2/3 innings in relief of Max Strecker, including a nerve-wracking seventh inning.

Grand Rapids loaded the bases with one out and got within two on a sacrifice fly, but Sokoll struck out a Thunderhawk looking with a nasty slider containing plenty of movement.

Sokoll, who missed the first half of the season with an elbow injury, spiked his glove down in joy.

“Everything was just lifted off my shoulders, all the pressure was off.”

And it means the second-seeded Zephyrs will face No. 4 Totino-Grace or No. 1 Benilde-St. Margaret’s at 4:30 p.m. Monday at Target Field for the title. Mahtomedi lost 5-3 to New Prague in last year’s championship game at CHS Field.

In the tournament for the ninth time since 2014, the Zephyrs (22-4) seek the school’s second title in four years and third since 2018. The 2021 title came via a 20-3 win over Grand Rapids.

Mahtomedi also beat Grand Rapids 3-2 in a semifinal last year; a year after Grand Rapids won a quarterfinal matchup. Like this year, both those games were also played on June 14.

“(Mahtomedi coach) Rob (Garry) said yesterday when we were flipping a coin, we should just schedule a semifinal date every year because that’s how it ends up,” Grand Rapids coach Bill Kinnunen said.

From the third-base coaching box, he and Mahtomedi third baseman Tommy Becker were also noting the familiarity. That was before a fielding gem by the senior was the play of the game.

Down 4-2 with one out in the fourth, Grand Rapids had the bases loaded. Becker gloved a high hopper, took a couple steps to get his foot on the bag and threw across the diamond to first base where Jack Erickson made the clutch scoop.

“I skipped it over, but he got the job done,” Becker said with a smile as Erickson stood a couple feet away. “It was game-changing, it moved the momentum back to our side.”

Like last year’s contest, Mahtomedi jumped out to a 3-0 lead. This year, it all came in the first inning.

On a sun-drenched afternoon, Strecker walked, advanced on a wild pitch, and scored two batters later on a groundout. A sharp single by Erickson plated Austin Felling, who singled. Erickson later reached third on a throwing error and scored on a passed ball.

Strecker added an RBI single in the second. Erickson scored on a squeeze play in the sixth.

Grand Rapids (17-9) left two men on in the first and the bases loaded in the second. A Dominc Broberg double scored one for the Thunderhawks in the third, but Strecker got a fly out and then struck out two batters to strand Broberg.

“We couldn’t get the big hit. In these big games, that’s what’ll cost you,” Kinnunen said. “And we made some key errors and mistakes. That comes back to haunt you when you’re playing outstanding programs like you get when you get to this level.”

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